The Moon Goddess
by Nienna Elensar
Summary: PG13 for Violence and Action. Girl with shadowed past falls into Mirkwood. I know that idea is dead but have u read a story where She BLOWS UP HER HOUSE!? NOT A MARY SUE! Many twists i promise. I know that sum sux but its my first fic, please R
1. Chapter 1 Leaving

The Moon Goddess  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"Cindy? Cindy, wake up. He's gone. He went to bed. Cindy, wake up, please, wake up!" Ellie cried desperately. Cindy moaned, her head was spinning, everything seemed obscured or blurry. The linoleum floor felt cool to her cheek. Oh how Cindy wanted to surrender to unconsciousness, but she didn't want to scare her younger sister anymore, so she quickly got to her feet, ignoring the piercing pain in her side and head. As her eyes came back into focus, she slowly looked about the room. John was still in his hiding spot under the chair, but Ellie had gotten out and watched Cindy anxiously, wringing her hands with worry. 'She is much too young to have to worry like that,' noted Cindy sadly. The room itself was a mess, the table was upturned, a lamp knocked over, beer cans where everywhere. He had been really drunk tonight.  
  
Cindy felt her side, checking her ribs, making sure they weren't broken. She could feel a few sore spots on her stomach but nothing major. Then her hand touched her head, and felt a huge lump forming over her left eye. Damn. John came out of his hiding spot and asked Cindy if she was ok. His eyes wide in fright. Her forehead must have looked really bad. Cindy lied and said she was all right. She didn't want them to worry. But they had some much to worry about. She wanted to assure them that everything was going to turn out just fine and tried to smile, but it came out more as a grimace. This only caused the two children to rush over and give her a hug. The older girl patted their backs and sighed as she thought, 'this is just what I need, he's drunk and it's only Tuesday. Why won't he just have a heart attack and leave us alone?' She then reprimanded herself for thinking such a thought. If it wasn't for him, they'd be homeless and penniless. 'But still... It'd be better for the kids... I can't stand to see them live like this, I don't want them to.'  
  
She was then struck with an idea. It just might work. In a hushed voice, Cindy told the two children that they were going to go to their neighbor's house to spend the night. Ellie and John both gave a silent cheer, and quickly packed their things into a blue plastic bag. Cindy smiled but knew that this wasn't going to be just a little sleep over at William's house. They were getting out of this hell, forever. Making sure that the two had packed everything they would need, double checking to make sure they had a toothbrush and enough underwear, she gave them each 50 dollars from His wallet, telling them to keep that safe. She then quickly scribbled on a piece of paper, telling John to give it to William's mom. He nodded, not knowing what it said, for though he was older than Ellie, he was not old enough to read, but he knew that it was important, if Cindy had written it. She never wrote anything down unless it was really important. Like homework. She placed a kiss on each of their foreheads and watched them walk down the road. Then she attended to the matters at hand.  
  
Cindy went up to her room, but not before checking on Him. 'Good ole dad,' she thought. 'Out cold. Great, now I can finally get what I've wanted for so long.' Once in her room, Cindy changed out of her usual baggy pants and XL hoodie and put on her favorite shirt and pants, she looked at herself in the cracked mirror hanging on her wall. "Except for the bruise on my forehead," she said to her image, "I almost look good." The skinny girl in the black tank top and stretch black jeans stared back at her, and gave her a ghost of a smile. 'Now I am truly Cynthia the Moon Goddess' she thought. Tonight was the night, and she wanted to look her best, for no reason in particular. She guessed that it was a thing criminals did when they were about to do something bad. Cindy shrugged that thought away. She wasn't a criminal, and this wasn't bad. It was revenge. It was justice. Quickly, she grabbed her cd player with her favorite CDs and put them in their rugged carry-case. Her hand waltzed over her copy of 'Lord of the Rings'. It was tattered from much use. It was her most favorite book in the entire world, and she decided to take it too, since it did not deserve such a fate to be left behind.  
  
Without another thought, she got all of His beer bottles from the refrigerator and dumped them throughout the house, taking a few swigs during the process. Cindy shuddered as the light brown liquid flowed down her throat. She didn't know why she even drank it, because it tasted horrendous. But still she drank it, just like Him. Once outside, she lit a match and stared at it for a moment before throwing it through a window, and watched the house she had spent all fifteen years of her life in explode into a swelling mass of orange and yellow hate, with Him inside. The flames grew and licked the pitch-black sky letting out a mighty roar, with stars twinkling happily in the night. Laughing like a maniac she said "That was for Mom." Then she scooped up her most precious and only possessions, turned around and walked into the forest, never to return.  
  
***  
  
Mrs. Cox was quite surprised when she heard a knock on the door. But when she saw Ellie and John standing on the doorstep, she smiled and welcomed them in, knowing that William would be happy to have friends over and that Cindy could have some peace and quiet at the house. God knew she needed it. After their mother died, Cindy took over the job of being John and Ellie's mom. Why their father didn't help out was beyond anyone. It was Cindy who took the kids everywhere, who got the groceries, who helped the kids with their homework. It was only when John handed Mrs. Cox the letter did she think that something could be wrong. If Cindy ever needed anything, she would come over herself, and she knew that she was always welcome here anytime. Looking at it with suspicion, Mrs. Cox read the note and gasped.  
  
***  
  
Dear, Mrs. Cox,  
I must thank you for all the help that you have given us. But there are some things you should know. First, please don't read this out loud or let Ellie or John knows about what this letter contains. For it contains the truth, and they cannot know it. They must retain their innocence.  
  
I remember the day my mother died like it was yesterday. I had gone to pick up Ellie and John from the park. Then we went home, me first into the house, as always. But when I got there, I found her at the bottom of the stairs, terrified, I took the kids to your house, and you know the rest of what happened that horrible day. But what you don't know is the real cause of her death. It was not an accident. She did not slip like the police say she did. HE pushed her down those stairs. But no one would believe me, because He was not under the influence for once, and there were no signs of a struggle. But it was HIM. He did it, and now he is gone to the only place where judgement can be truly passed on him. But I must go too, for I cannot stay here, with the pain of this horrible truth. Please don't tell Ellie or John, for it would break their hearts. Tell them that I went away, and that I will always be with them. The night calls to me, and I must go. Thank you again for you kindness and may you take care of the kids for me and my mom.  
~Cynthia  
  
***  
  
Cindy knew where she was going, even though it was foggy and black in the woods. She was going to her favorite place, the cliff that looked over the valley. It was the prettiest sight in the entire town, and it was also the most dangerous. One false step and *whoosh* down into to the river. But Cindy didn't mind. She almost liked the idea. Clutching her copy of LOTR to her chest, Cindy put on her head set and put in the CD Meteora, by Linkin Park. Trees swished by her as she jogged, listening to the song 'Easier to Run'. *It's easier to run, replacing this pain with something numb. It's easier to go than face all this pain here all alone*. Then suddenly, she heard a high pitched cry and felt the ground beneath her feet give way to nothing, and before she knew what was happening, she blacked out.  
  
A/N ~ Ok, yea. I know. It stunk. BUT SHE BURNED THE HOUSE DOWN! That was my favorite part. Meteora is the BEST! You should listen to it while reading this, although it myte be to late for that. It's a cliffhanger - literally - so I will try to be fast in putting up the next chapter. And for those who think they have read this before - I have been having trouble with this and have had to take it down several times. But this time it will stay up for good! Hope you like it!  
  
PS - THANK YOU MEGAN AND SARAH! I REALLY APPRECIATE ALL OF YOUR HELP!  
  
PPS - Cynthia means "moon goddess". I checked it out at one of those baby names' websites. My mom gave me this horrible look when she saw me on it, as if she thought I was pregnant or something. BUT IM NOT! I am a virgin and plan to stay one until I'm married. Go Me! 


	2. Chapter 2 Arriving

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING THAT BELONGS IN THE REALM OF MIDDLE EARTH! I SHALL SAY THAT ONCE AND IT SHALL REMAIN TRUE FOR THE ENTIRE FIC (unless my parents are nice and buy ME for me). Only Harim is my very own elfy friend. *Harim walks in* *to TC* They're coming. *TC* Who? *Harim* Orcs! *TC* OH NO! HARIM SAVE ME! *cuddles close to Harim* *Harim blushes* Dot not worry little one, you have nothing to fear, now could you please let go of my leg?* *TC* NEVER! .... Sorry about that. Now on with the FAN FIC! *Harim wrestles TC off his leg* NO!  
  
A/N: To Laura - I was not plagiarizing Martina McBride ! So she wrote a song about a mother who sent her kids to the fair and burned the house down with her husband in it. There are many distinct differences that make this story MYNE! Sorry for ranting but I don't like to be called a plagiarist, being that I am a writer and original. FYI - I got the idea for this story before I heard anything about her song *Sticks out tounge* so there!  
  
Chapter 2  
  
The next thing Cindy knew was that she was lying on the ground. She could taste the dirt in her mouth. She felt her LOTR book poking her in the stomach and her cd case on her back. She hoped it wasn't broken. The ringing in her ears stopped and she heard people arguing next to her. Or at least, she thought they were people, but their voices were very rough, they croaked a lot and then one of them growled. People didn't growl. She turned her head to where the voices were coming from and silently gasped. They weren't people at all. They were covered in dirt and slime, had deformed faces and lots of bulk, and reminded her of the creatures called orcs in J. R. R. Tolkien's book Lord of the Rings. But they couldn't be. As she studied these creatures she saw an unusual marking on each of these foul creatures and knew instantly that it was . Then she noted that others had no markings, where a bit darker than the others, and their weapons were more primitive than those with the Eye mark on them. In her mind, the answers to her questions rang in her ears, .  
  
But Cindy would not believe it. There was no way she could be in Middle Earth, could there? There was no way she could be in this place that she had dreamed about for so long. How many stars had she wished on for this to come true? Why did she have to end up in an orc nest? And how did she know that the other orcs were from the dark forests of Mirkwood? Where was she, really? But Cindy could not ponder this for the orcs' argument was now very heated and she could not help but hear what they said for she was only a few feet away from them. Apparently it was between the Eye orcs and the other 'Mirkwood' orcs.  
***  
  
"We are to head to Mordor. Not to your dirty little hideouts," snarled Grnish, one of the biggest orcs and leader of his company. He would not let these 'commoners' ruin his mission that 'He' had appointed him. But those commoners had other plans.  
  
"We found her, we will take her where we want," growled one of the smaller, unmarked orcs. His voice was full of malice. Grnish soon took care of him with the swift movement of his broad blade. He then yelled to the others. "My orders come directly from 'Him'! We were to come to this place and find a she-elf and take this elf directly to 'Him', unharmed and unspoiled. Anyone who chooses to disagree stand now!" Two small orcs stood up and before they could say that they disagreed with Grnish, two larger orcs rushed to cut off their heads. Their lifeless bodies fell to the ground as blood splattered everything near it. There were no more arguments. Everything was settled - for the moment. But the commoners would not settle for long when these 'upstarts' had killed their leader and two of their comrades. But they waited and would take revenge when they had a plan. Now was the time to get ready, they were breaking camp. Grnish yelled for someone to pick up the she-elf.  
  
***  
  
As soon as Cindy heard Grnish speak of "Him" she thought he had meant Him, her father. 'But no,' she thought frightened, 'he's dead, and if this is truly Middle Earth, then he is talking about Sauron, for he bears the Red Eye, and the servants of Sauron are never to speak his name, or use his name in writing.' But why did that orc call her an elf? She realized that he knew she would be here, meaning that 'He' had brought her here, but why? Even as she questioned herself, she thought she knew the answer, but did not want to think it was true. She clutched her LOTR book closely. She needed to get away from them. The opportunity showed itself when an orc came to take her. While picking her up, she grabbed his blade and with all the strength she could muster, tried to thrust it through his thick body, but the blade was surprisingly sharp and she sliced through him with ease. He made no sound as he sank to his knees. Cindy pulled the blade from his body and was about to get away when some orc yelled. Grnish was shouting something but Cindy's adrenaline was pulsing too hard for her to hear him as many of the orcs rushed towards her. 'I really should have thanked Mom for making me take 5 years of karate and jujitsu, it sure will come in handy' Was Cindy's last thought before she was swept away into the heat of battle. She slashed at anything that moved close to her, but was always on the defense, though the orcs seemed not to want to kill her, for they would not use their blades towards her, only their bare hands. Holding the crude blade in one hand and her precious book in the other, she slashed out and sliced off many of their hands or arms if they came within her reach before something came in contact with the back of her head, knocking her unconscious.  
  
It was at this moment when a patrol of elves attacked and slaughtered the company of orcs.  
  
***  
  
Harim and his patrol had spotted the orcs' campfire and surrounded it. He had seen the girl and heard the arguments about her. Apparently she was someone of importance to Sauron, that much was clear. He had no clue why the Dark Demon would want a scrawny little girl but if he wanted her, that Harim had to stop him from getting her. He was about to attack when the girl sliced through one of her captors. That had caught him off guard. He had thought of her as part of the enemy, since she was traveling with them. He also thought that she was totally helpless, bringing the reason for all those beasts. But when he saw the girl rendered unconscious, he gathered his wits and troops and attacked.  
  
The battle did not last long and after all the orcs were slaughtered Harim set out to find the girl. There she was, in the same spot he had last seen her fall. Her eyes were closed, her dark brown hair was a mess. He picked her up, thought about how light she was, and realized that she was starved. He knew then that she was only a prisoner. He quickly brought her to where his patrol was camping for the evening and nursed her wounds, the one on the back of her head and the one over her eye, though he had no idea on how she came to that certain injury. 


	3. Chapter 3 Flight

Author's Notes: Thank you to all of those who reviewed! I GOT 6! GOING FOR 100! LOL.  
  
Replies-  
  
Laura: ok, so you weren't accusing me, I just wanted to make sure nobody else was, that's all. Also, I'm glad you liked the disclaimer, I may add more for comical relief or out of pure boredom and I will try my best to make these full chapters instead of 2 - 3 pagers in the future.  
  
Peh-Meh: OH WOW! Your Megan's sister! Awesome. I'm so glad that you like my OC. And thank you very much for the grammar lesson, I have made the correction's to chapter 2 and will keep it in mind for the rest of the story.  
  
Saiyan-girl-cheetah: I know it did sound kinda corny but I thought it didn't seem right to the reader that she be "miracle girl" and know how to fight all of the sudden without any explanation. I am going to try my best not to make this a MS but I am just letting the story lead itself at the moment. I am not offended and really appreciate that you took the time to R&R. I hope to keep satisfying you.  
  
Chapter 3  
  
As Harim dressed both wounds, he studied the young woman's face carefully. Even in sleep, it was hard set and angry. As he had applied the salve, he noticed many other scratches and scrapes that had already begun the slow processes of healing.  
  
As Harim's eyes roved over her scarred skin, the thought occurred to him that it was not possible that this terrible mutilation of flesh was performed by the orcs, for the scarrs where not fresh. "How in Middle Earth did this girl get so many wounds?" Wondered Harim aloud.  
  
Absently, he carelessly moved a stray strand of hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear. What he saw made him start. The ear was mutilated! Earring piercings lined the edges of her ear, some stones and other ringlets. It was impossible to tell if her ears where pointed or not.  
  
This girl was a mystery, and Harim was anxious to solve it.  
  
***  
Cindy winced and tried to open her eyes. A tremendous pressure on her eyes caused her to blink and shut them. Her head felt as if someone was trying to split open her skull with a pickax, and she let out a quiet moan. Snuggling into the blankets, she thought, 'these sheets sure smell fresh.' She realized with a jerk that she wasn't in her own room. Frightened and confused, Cindy's eyes popped open and looked around wildly.  
  
A man who had been sitting in a chair next to the bed she was on came to her side and studied her with interest. When he moved, Cindy almost jumped. All she knew was that she was in a strange room with a strange man staring at her like she was some sort of freak. Just the fact that there was a MAN in the room made Cindy want to scream in panic. On instinct, she scooted away from the man until her back met the wall.  
  
Then she saw something that made her gasp silently. He had pointed ears! This man was an Elf! Her eyes lighted up with joy as she thought, "Oh my GODDESS! MY WILDEST dreams have come true! This is so Awesome! Tolkien wasn't lying! I'M IN THE SAME ROOM AS AN ELF!"  
  
Cindy snapped herself out of her fantasies. She was not in Middle Earth! 'There is no possible way that I could be there,' rationalized Cindy. 'This is how my brain is coping with a huge amount of pain and stress. By putting me at ease in a fantasy world, with elves.' To prove her dreams wrong, Cindy started interrogating the stranger sitting next to her. "Who are you? Why am I here? What kind of joke do you think you're playing?"  
  
"To answer your first question," replied the elf, "I am Harim, First Marshal of the Fifth Patrol of Mirkwood. You are here because I found you wounded and I am in the process of healing you. I play no joke."  
  
As Cindy stared into his eyes, she realized that the elf was telling the truth. Or so he thought. 'Man, he must be crazy,' was Cindy's only thought. She reached up and touched one of those huge ears, saying, "Those are so fake," just to assure herself that they were. She pulled lightly on it and they didn't come off. Almost instinctively, the elf slapped her hand away from his ear, causing Cindy to immediatly bring her legs to her chest, burying her head into her arms. Fetal position.  
  
***  
  
Harim's eyes narrowed in annoyance as he massaged his 'injured' ear protectively. His red cheeks showed his fury. Was it his fault that this 'creature' as he now called her was hypersensitive and was now sniveling in the corner? 'I had only tapped her hands away in the act of protecting myself,' thought the elf unfeeling. 'In fact,' the elf thought self righteously, 'she was the one who began this whole affair by grabbing and yanking my ears!' But as her shoulders continued to shake violently with no end in sight, his sulking glare softened.  
  
Not knowing what else to do, Harim sat back in his chair and murmured to her in Elvish, telling her that everything was ok and that she need not be scared. This seemed to relax her a bit and she slowly uncurled herself and with red cheeks of embarrassment, looked down at his boots. Harim, understanding her distress, said in a kind tone, "Look at me." But when she did not respond, he began to wonder if she had understood him at all. He thought for a moment for a way to overcome this communication problem and then he repeated the sentence in formal Sindarin, trying to keep his voice as perfect as possible, free from accent or inflection. When the girl shook her head slightly, Harim was surprised. He had not believed that this girl spoke in the language of the Eldarin. He took her chin and tilted her head up in order to see her face a little bit better.  
  
His actions proved to be a mistake, for she immediately jumped off the bed and started screaming bloody murder, telling him to get away from her in Sindarin (with some colorful English curse words sprinkled throughout). Harim took a step back surprised, and said still in perfect Sindarin, "You have nothing to fear. Please calm down."  
  
She spat back, "Auta miqula orqu," which meant, 'Go kiss an orc'. Boiling over with fury, Harim jumped over the bed and slapped her. "How dare you insult me?!' He said, eyes blazing with anger. She stared at him in disbelief that he had just hit her for a second and then bolted for the door. Before he could stop her, she flung it past the flap and was running towards the direction of the woods.  
  
Harim stared at her for a moment before reacting. He raced after Cindy, but with the head start, the girl was far gone. Pausing outside the tent, he stopped and tried to concentrate on hearing the girl. Even with his sensitive ears, he could not hear her - no pounding footfalls, no ragged breath. Silence. She had completely disappeared. Immediately, Harim barked out orders, sending out three search parties to scrounge the area within the radius of a league. Harim had not been ranked a top patrol officer for sitting around, and before long, half the camp was out in the woods, looking for the mysterious girl. Harim sucked in his breath after the search parties were dismissed. Slinging his bow over his shoulder, her ran into the forbidding woods, knowing that he had to find the girl before the spiders got her, or fouler things.  
  
A/N: THANK YOU SO MUCH MEG & SARAH! SPECIAL THANKS TO MEG FOR ALL THE SUGGESTIONS! IT TURNED OUT SO MUCH BETTER! Three times the charm! 


	4. Chapter 4 Fight

A/N - Since some many people have told me to, and personally, I know I could do better, I have gone back and polished the story up as much as I could, but since I am me, its still not perfect, but it will have to do for now. I will elaborate more whenever I get inspired to. Thanx to everyone who has reviewed!  
  
Replies-  
  
Laura: Calm down and thank you for the very long, stupid, pointless review. You have inspired me to continue the story even though I long to see you talk to the voice. I have finished this as quickly as possible just for your sanity's sake. ^I find it funny reading your's and Megan's convos and don't mind if you two continue this argument but please keep cursing and vanity to a minimum if you don't mind. Thank you.  
  
Megan: Love you too! Thanx a bunch. Ditto from above^  
  
EldarExilePrincess: I am honored that you would read my fan fic! Thank you for pointing out some grammatical errors. I think your poems are great, I just haven't had the time to review. LEGOLAS IS AWESOME! And will be entering this fic soon, hopefully.  
  
Chapter 4  
  
Cindy tripped on the millionth tree root and fell to the ground, cursing her luck and the gods for the trouble she was in. Not only was she lost with nowhere to go, but there were elves hunting her as if she was some sort of animal. "Why are there so some many Goddamned tree roots?!" screamed the frustrated girl, venting all of her fury at the enormous trees that surrounded her.  
  
'I have to keep moving, or those elves will get me,' Cindy thought, forcing herself to get up. Her torn knees were reluctant to bear her, but with a great show of effort, She stumbled forward. The thought of being captured did not relieve the girl. "What's even more depressing," said Cindy to the trees, "is that I don't have my CD player with me. I know I brought it here, wherever here is..." She said, vaguely recalling the pounding of the case on her back when she had that run-in with the orcs, as she was now certain that's what they were, if this was a hallucination. Only Cindy would think that there were orcs or elves hunting her. With a sudden jolt, she realized that she did not have her book with her. What would happen if one of the elves read it? What did it matter if this was really a hallucination?  
  
As she walked, she stared off into the gloom ahead of her and jumped when she saw eyes staring back at her. Shaking her head, Cindy looked back and the eyes were gone. "Paranoia," Cindy muttered as she stumbled on into the darkness and despair but could not shake the feeling that someone, or something was watching her. She could feel its eyes boring into her back, but she tried to ignore it as the darkness devoured her.  
  
***  
  
After two hours and several false alarms, Harim and his company had trekked deep into the forest. Fingering his bow, Harim held the torch at eye level, using the light in a feeble attempt to dissipate the darkness. Harim cursed under his breath, bitterly wondering if this she-man was worth the trouble of putting his troops in danger. 'But the mortal could be a spy of Sauron's,' he reminded himself. 'If I let her get away, she can report back to her master.' He sped up his pace.  
  
Suddenly, he heard a noise above his head. He tossed his torch to an elf and whipped out an arrow, notched it into the bow, pointed it to the noise, and saw a mass of flowing white threads: A spider's web. There, in the center of the white masses, was the girl glaring down at him as if to say, "Get me down from here". Evidently, she had struggled against the bindings, for the ropes were tangled in hopeless knots about her. A thick thread was wrapped around her mouth. Her eyes shone with rage and pain, but also with the terror of a trapped animal.  
  
Harim ordered his company to halt as he took a few steps closer, pulling out his knife, readying to release her from the flowing white monster. Instantly, webs flew from the darkness and wrapped themselves around his body. He knew that he had just walked into a death trap, and he hadn't seen it until it was too late.  
  
Immediately, spiders swarmed from the shadows and attacked the troop of elves. The elves slashed up with their knives while the spiders crashed down with their pincers crushing whatever was in range. Two eyes met eight, both holding the same fire of fury as the two hated enemies fought on, bent on destroying the other species. Blood splurged everywhere as Harim and Cindy watched from above as the horrific yet mesmerizing dance played before them.  
  
As Cindy watched, she couldn't decide which side she wanted to win. If the elves won, they would take her back to their camp and probably torture her. But if the gigantic revolting spiders won, she'd be dinner. Finally deciding that she would root for the former, Cindy kept her eyes on the battle, flinching as blood squirted up at her, covering her hair and body. The elves fought valiantly and with great skill, but there were just too many spiders to kill them all. They kept crawling out from the darkness, as if they were being spit out by the blackness, being retched out of the belly of a black widow.  
  
A/N II: Ohhh... Its so frustrating trying and failing to put something into words. Sorry I am bad at writing bloody parts, but I've got great mental images of it, I just can't produce it into writing. So you'll just have to use your imagination.  
  
A/N III: THANK YOU SO MUCH MEGAN! YOU MAKE THIS STORY SO MUCH BETTER! 


	5. Chapter 5 March to Thranduil's Halls

Author's Notes: I am so sorry for not finishing this chapter sooner, but school and life have taken priority for a while. However, today, I am trying to procrastinate and not do my homework so I was able to finish this chapter. I'd also like to thank everyone for their unending support and nagging on me to get this finished. Hehehe.  
  
Replies -  
  
lime: thank you, your support is much appreciated.  
  
Sunrunner of Summer aka Serpent of light: thank you! Hehehe, you'll just have to read and find out! And there is nothing wrong with being blood thirsty, as long as you don't kill anyone yourself. Oh, and when are you going to update!? Again, thank you for the compliments.  
  
Megan: I am glad you take pride in me, but you know I'm nothing without my beta testers! I thank Sarah for the metaphors (well, some of them were mine, but most were hers). There's nothing wrong with bathroom humor, as long as it doesn't actually take place in the bathroom. Or any other 'room'. I'll have to find out more about SA3.  
  
Laura: It was a neat idea but I kind of already wrote that part and I was too lazy to alter it. Sorry. And yes, everything can and is blamed on the government and politicians, because, really, it is their fault.  
  
Meg again: Please don't get pissed. And yes, it is the government's fault.  
  
Laura again: I'm updating so please don't eat your fairy dust, cuz I want some! And please stop posting your e-mail address. I will not be held responsible if some phyco starts e-mailing you.  
  
Meg yet again: What's wrong with letting your ego loose every once and a while, since guys do it every day... bastards... oh wait! There myte be guys reading this... Well, if guys are reading this, then they have good taste, so they don't count as being bastards. And Meg, you have a higher IQ than 13! Or else you wouldn't be my beta tester.  
  
EldarExilePrincess: thank you for your support! Love your stories!  
  
Megan (for the last time): Don't try to use the guilt trick on me or I will murder you like I plan to do to Josh (stupid bastard better watch out). Love your lil chant though, its cute and it ryhmes... hehe. And please don't glare at me, cuz then I'll glare right back, and I'll unnerve you. Hehehe the irony.  
  
Well, that's all the replies *wipes sweat* that's probably the hardest part of writing a fan fic (jk). Anyway, on with the story! I'm in a hehehe mood today.  
  
Chapter 5 - March to Thranduil's Halls  
  
Cindy was filled with panic as she watched the number of elves quickly diminish to only a couple dozen. 'Damn, why do I always pick the losing side!?'she thought with frustration. Then one of the elves screamed, causing the remaining warrior elves formed a tight circle around four elves. The elves positioned themselves in the center and began chanting something in a language that sounded like Sindarin, but it was not so, for she couldn't understand what they were saying. As she debated on what language they were chanting, a dim light seemed to be emitted from the four elves and grew stronger as their voices rose. As the elves reached a crescendo, the light exploded into a flash of brilliance that made Cindy avert her eyes and flinch, but she sensed that the spiders did not like light either. Dimly, she saw the monstrous creatures scurry back into the darkness, their home.  
  
Cindy squinted as the elves, who were still shining like a light bulb, cut down the evil elf, the one who had slapped her, from his bonds. He landed on the ground and turned to face her. If she was able to talk, she probably would have started screaming like a banshee, but being that her mouth was covered with a web gag, she was reduced to only glaring at him. He said in perfect Sindarin, "If we cut you down, do you promise not to run away?" Cindy replied by continuing to glare murder at him. How dare this pompous elf ask her to promise such a thing? After what he did to her? He had some nerve, Cindy dearly wished to pop his overblown ego. Not knowing what thoughts were running through Cindy's mind, the elf slashed through the sticky cords, freeing her.  
  
***  
  
When the girl hit the ground, she rolled into the brush. But Harim was smart. He reacted faster than last time and jumped in front of her log roll. Not knowing he was there the girl rolled right into his legs with such force that she knocked him to the ground. The two gave cries of pain and then, realizing what had occurred, the girl leapt up with surprising speed and made for the other way, only to be stopped by the remaining elves. They had her trapped for good. Harim expected her to admit defeat, and to come quietly, but the girl surprised him again. She sulked around the circle, her body in a defensive mode. He knew then that she would not give up without a fight. He spoke with his comrades in their native Sindarin, with a heavy accent. He asked if anyone had rope. The girl still walked around in the circle, glaring at each elf in turn, as if looking for a weak link to try and break free. When they replied no, the girl stopped for a second, and then continued stalking.  
  
Then someone suggested that they used spider web for rope, and mostly everyone agreed. They eyed the girl with disdain. She growled menacingly, which made Harim wonder if she understood what they were saying. But he remembered that she could not translate past his accent, so he ordered someone to cut out some bindings. As soon as the elf broke from the circle, the girl dived for the gap, but did not make it four feet before six elves had tackled her. She fought like a wild thing, snarling and biting and clawing at anything and everything. But still Harim and his comrades held fast. In minutes her hands were bound behind her back, but her legs were not bound, so that she could still walk.  
  
After the demon girl was tamed, Harim walked next to her while the rest surrounded them in formation to keep the Rauko* from escaping.  
  
***  
Cindy had not spoken a word and kept her mouth shut, fearing what would happen if she said anything. But she was not stupid and listened attentively to the talk around her, trying to decipher what these monsters were saying. After about a half an hour she could translate through the accent quite well and knew that they were talking about her. 'Stupid creatures,' thought Cindy, 'they think I don't understand a word they're saying... Bastards.' She her anger began to boil because the elf walking next to her would not stop talking about her. His continual insults, verbal lashings, and conclusions were unbearable and completely wrong. She could not help but hiss every time he mentioned her as a 'Dark Messenger' which was totally not true. How dare he associate her with Him!?  
  
Finally one of the elves had some common sense and told 'Harim', who was the jackass elf next to her, to see if any of his conclusions were true. Harim replied, "Her identity is betrayed by her actions." Nevertheless, he turned to Cindy, and in Perfect Sindarin, asked her of her name and master.  
Taking a deep breath to control her rage she replied solemnly also in perfect Sindarin, "I am Cynthia and I serve no one, especially not some stupid delusional Maia who thinks he can rule the world." A ripple of confusion ran through the group around her and with a smile, she took her chance. She kicked the elf on her right side in the groin. His normally high pitched voice reached an octavo that no one had ever heard before and everyone rushed to the right anticipating her movement in that direction. She ducked, jammed her shoulder into Harim's diaphragm. He sunk silently to the ground. She jumped over him and ran to left into the forest.  
  
She got about fifty feet before she was brutally taken down by a swarm of infuriated elves. Struggling to get up but being pinned down Cindy saw the elf she had kicked hobbling over. Once his got in distance, the elves who had held her down sprang away and the elf began to kick her mercilessly and would not relent until Harim, who had found his voice, ordered, "Rindel! Daro**!" With one final blow, Rindel hobbled away. With difficulty, Cindy stood up and spat at Rindel's retreating form. It landed right on his back and everyone could see that the spit was mingled with blood. But Cindy did not let a tear slide down her cheek or not make a sound, but glared daggers into Rindel's form. With a bark from Harim, Cindy was re-tamed and the group formed around her again as they continued their march.  
  
***  
  
Once he made sure the group was calmed down again Harim turned to Cindy and asked if she was alright. She just continued to glare at Rindel who was now walking in front of her instead of beside. Becoming slightly annoyed at her ignorance, Harim began to say that it was her own fault and that she shouldn't have tried to run when she cut him off snarling, "I know what you're trying to do, you're trying to make me feel bad to defend myself and tell you why I tried to escape and say that I wanted to run to my 'Master' which is exactly what you want to hear but I have no 'Master' and I'm not talking to you anymore."  
  
Harim tried to reply but she seemed to be picking up momentum and continued ranting, "I'm not going to say a single word. In fact, I think I'll just sulk. Don't even bother to try and talk to me, because I won't bother replying. You know what, they were just spiders. I'm not afraid of spiders. I could have killed them all. Too bad you had to interfere. I know karate and I'm good at it. So there, Mr. Touch-my-ears-and-die-man! You can torture me and I won't talk. You can beat me with-"  
"I know your kind," Harim suddenly interjected, smirking. "When women think, they speak."  
  
Harim reveled in Cindy's surprised look until she started yelling. "Whaddya mean? Men talk as much as women do, if not more! Don't give me that sexist bullshit, you chauvinistic pig!" She stopped abruptly and fell into glorious silence.  
  
It must have been Harim's contented smile, for Cindy snapped, "What are you so happy about? Is it because you just captured a helpless girl? Oh yeah, you're tough. Brought along all your friends, huh? I bet I could kick all their-"  
  
Harim turned to another elf striding behind them. "Did you bring that gag?"  
  
***  
  
After hearing that Cindy gave a screech and, tearing through her bonds, lunged at Harim. She rammed her fist into the elf's jaw, but she barely started when she was tackled. For all her desperate struggles, her hands and feet were bound and her mouth gagged. She was thrown over the shoulder of an elf.  
  
For an hour the elves heard her muffled screams through the web gag and watched as Cindy's captor struggled to keep a hold of her writhing form. She thrashed and fought to get out of the vulnerable position. Then she gave one final screech and jerk until she became still and defeated. She took in a deep, shaky breath, forcing herself not to cry. Not now. But no matter how much she fought it, her mind was filled with darkness and she was consumed by horrible thoughts and visions.  
  
***  
  
The elves basked in the girl's silence for the rest of the march back to camp where they tossed her into a tent and had five guards positioned around it. After her numerous escape attempts, they were not taking any chances. But the entire night they could see to silhouette her still form covered in a blanket from outside the tent. She did not move an inch.  
  
After a few hours Harim, finally taking pity on the poor thing, grabbed a couple pieces of way bread from his saddle bag and pushed aside the tent flap. He sat down beside the girl, who upon his entering pulled the blanket over her head. "Get up! I have something for you." Harim whispered.  
  
The girl only rolled over and mumbled, "Five more minutes John". Harim wondered who John was, and made a mental note to ask her later. He could not believe that the girl needed more sleep, for they were about to break camp. So he shook her a bit less then gently, causing her to screech and flail her arms about. Harim jumped back a second too late and she hit him squarely in the nose. Rubbing it gently, Harim watched as the girl slowly came to realize where she was and then start yelling at him for waking her up.  
  
Harim was infuriated. The ungrateful wench treated her saviors like soil. He yelled back saying that she should show more gratitude to them for saving her life instead of treating them wrongfully.  
  
The girl opened her mouth to reply and then closed it and looked at the ground. The elf smirked, thinking that he had won this little argument, when she spoke: quietly, but purposefully. She said, "First, you treat me like dirt underneath your boot. Second, you don't even try to understand me. You take me for an animal. Third, if you had a life like mine you would have chosen the spiders."  
  
He stopped. "What do you mean?" he asked, but the girl only looked up into his eyes with an expression that Harim had never seen before. For all the years of his life, Harim had seen pain. He had watched elves die in battle and of broken hearts. But he had never, in his entire life, seen an expression so pained, so mournful, so dark, yet so innocent. Never. It disturbed him greatly, those eyes, and they haunted him for many nights to come.  
  
The girl could not hold his stare and looked away. She noticed the way bread discarded on the ground, picked it up, brushed it off, and gobbled it up before Harim could say otherwise.  
  
The elves broke camp and the girl's hands were bound. The elves marched for a day. All the while, Harim thought about what had happened in the past two days. He had lost his temper more times in one day than he had in the past 100 years, had felt such a wide range of emotions from pity, to rage, to sadness. And, had caused him to trek through wilderness on rampage. All because of this mysterious girl who called herself Cynthia. Even when the troops reached the palace and went through the gates of Thranduil's halls, Harim's heart was still troubled.  
  
*Means demon in Sindarin. ** Means Stop! In Sindarin. Please tell me if any of my elvish words are not in Sindarin and I will make amends immediately.  
  
Happy Holidays.  
  
Hope you liked it, your suggestions, comments, and support are appreciated, and a special thanks to my beta testers for their determination that has helped me keep this story alive. Megan, the little stars also mean change in POV from Harim to Cindy (and to other characters as the story progresses). 


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